Chelsea
Man Utd Cleared To Complete Signing Of £70m South American Star
Manchester United are clear to push forward with a deal to sign £70m Chelsea attacker Willian after Barcelona snapped-up Malcom from Bordeaux
There is plenty of Manchester United-related gossip doing the rounds in the papers with the Red Devils linked with a whole host of star names. Today, United are cleared to sign Willian…
Manchester United are clear to push forward with a deal to sign £70m Chelsea attacker Willian after Barcelona snapped-up Malcom from Bordeaux, according to the Mirror.
Willian joined Chelsea from Anzhi Makhachkala in 2013 and he’s provided 44 goals and 39 assists in his 236 appearances to help clinch 2 Premier League titles and 3 domestic cups but his future at Stamford Bridge is in serious doubt this summer.
The 30-year-old was a bit-part player under Antonio Conte last season – only starting around half of their matches – and is reportedly keen to seek a fresh start ahead of the new campaign despite the arrival of Maurizio Sarri as Chelsea’s new manager.
Barcelona and Manchester United have been battling it out over his signature in recent weeks but the Mirror claim the Catalans refused to meet Chelsea’s £70m valuation so ended their interest in favour of completing a £37m deal for Malcom instead.
The newspaper says this has cleared the way for Manchester United to push ahead with their pursuit of Willian as Jose Mourinho looks to be reunited with the Brazilian international at Old Trafford this summer.
Mourinho was the man who took Willian to Chelsea five years ago and the United boss is seemingly keen to work with the South American again as he looks to freshen up his attacking options ahead of the new season.
Mourinho has been frustrated with his attempts to land his top targets this summer and the United boss admitted on Tuesday that he’s hoping to sign two more players before the window shuts on August 9th.
The Portuguese coach is quoted as saying by the Mirror:
“I would get two more players. One thing is what I would like. Another thing is what is going to happen.”
Mourinho has been relatively quiet in the market so far with third-choice goalkeeper Lee Grant and young full-back Diogo Dalot brought in along with midfielder Fred – who’s the only new addition likely to be a first team regular this season.
So United are expected to remain active during the closing weeks of the window and Willian could be viewed as a potential replacement for Anthony Martial amid ongoing speculation surrounding his future at Old Trafford.
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We’ll have to wait and see how things progress but Chelsea have shown in the past with the sales of Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata they’ll do business with United if the price is right so Willian could become the latest player to swap west London for Manchester.
